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Nice story, indeed! This is a story where the media should actually fawn over Hansbrough.

Indeed, but were I in better shape, I'd be game were it going to a good charity/nice prize pool.

Impressive showing!

Like yourself, I've tried a wide variety of balls since I really got into bowling in '99. I've bowled woth 2 Columbias, a Hammer, 2 Brunswicks, and my favorite strike ball's currently a Storm. I'll use my second Columbia on straighter spares, too. The Hammer and my second Brunswick are out of commission: I bowled them until they cracked all the way through. I may check into the Rival, because I'd like to have a versatile ball, and it seems like that one would work well when the lanes break down a bit, too. I can't tell you how many series I've bowled that look something like this: 190, 155, 180. I don't have a ball spinner right now, but it's something I'd be wise to invest in, especially with my new ball in the next month. With my release style and favorite angle, I don't think I'd have much of a problem with the ball burning it up, at least right now, unless I took a considerable amount of speed off it. And with the oil patterns they use in PA, the more surface it has, the better off I'll be for the time being. Hopefully I'll run into you there over the Christmas season. That is, if my fiancee wants to go. ;)

Indeed I did, and I'm going to make some adjustments based off that. It's certainly a wake-up call. With the diet, of course I'll adjust: I need to stop drinking as many carbonated drinks (and I do quite a bit, my dad's employed in PepsiCo). Likewise, I need to continue the switch from red meats to chicken. In addition, staying away from acidic foods is always good. But it's not only the diet: I need to do better with keeping warm and alkalizing my body. I've seen the results of uric acid buildup in my own family, with kidney stones especially. Thankfully, I've never had that, but I've seen the excruciating pain associated with it. Even surgeries to remove them.

I appreciate the kind words, Norse! And I'm very honored for your support, even as a Tech fan. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are a multitude of reasons I believe that UVA has fallen on hard times in the big two revenue sports recently. Here they are, and I'll just name the big ones, in what I feel is the proper order of importance. #1: Administrative Apathy to Sports UVA's main claim to fame will always be its academic prestige. Frankly, I wouldn't have it any other way; I'm proud of my alma mater for its tireless devotion to academics, and in that respect, Casteen/Littlepage/Sandridge/BOV/etc. have done a successful job. However, this doesn't mean that the administration should turn all but a blind eye to athletics. Oh no, far from it. Frankly, I think the administration couldn't give a hill of beans as long as the coaches aren't running the team into the ground and producing model, upstanding, graduating citizens. Here's an example from football. Groh's on pace to go 5-7, 9-4, and 5-7 in his last three seasons. That's a sterling 19-18 record. For his career, Groh will be 56-44 (34-30 ACC) after this season mercifully ends Saturday. However, here's what Craig Littlepage said when giving Groh his vote of confidence: Groh "and his staff have done a good job and our team has responded well...We have great wins against ranked teams and we're in the mix for divisional and conference championships." WHAT?! We had 2 comeback wins against lower top-25 opponents, and the only reason UVA was in the conference chase until last week was because the ACC was incredibly average. Here's my translation of Littlepage's soundbyte: "It's alright, we're not absolutely in the toilet, we're still raking in money hand-over-fist. We've managed to keep ourselves somewhat relevent in a bad BCS conference. Chris Long, I mean, Al Groh won the 2007 ACC COTY title. He's our guy!". Far from a commitment to excellence in athletics. Which leads me to... #2: Donor Apathy to Sports At other institutions, donors give a considerable amount of money to successful athletic programs, for athletic programs are often the face of the school to the public at large. I believe you see a microcosm of this at Virginia Tech, where the success of the football program has spilled over to where the Athletic Department receives fairly sizable donations relative to the growth of the academic endowment. UVA is a horse of a different color in that regard. The donors give, give, and give, regardless of the success of the sports teams. For example, in 2007, Frank Batten, Sr. gave $100 million to start the "School of Leadership and Public Policy". Carl and Hunter Smith gave $25 million to start the marching band and fund a new performing arts center slated for construction in 2009, and this after many more renovations around grounds. John Paul Jones, Jr. gave $150 million to help fund the construction of his father's namesake arena. UVA's endowment now stands at $4 billion dollars. That's right. However, these same donors will NOT use their "power of the pursestrings" to get rid of unachieving coaches (like some of our peers, ND and Michigan, have done). The Virginia Athletics Foundation raised season ticket prices this last year anywhere from 40-800% to maintain season tickets. Of course, some donors were forced to give up their tickets, in protest or because they couldn't afford it. But enough ponied up the money in the name of "helping the university" to help the VAF turn a profit. In short, the donors (and even major athletic donors) will continue to blindly give more and more money, regardless of the success of the on-field product. #3: Director's Cup Standings The Director's Cup is "a program that honors institutions maintaining a broad-based program, achieving success in many sports, both men's and women's", given by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics. UVA, gifted with a healthy endowment by the aforementioned donors, is able to appease Title IX and field 27 Division I sports. This is a great thing, and a noble goal to strive for, but it's not something to totally dictate your athletic policies. However, many of these sports have certain niches, and many schools do not field Division I sports in such things as crew, lacrosse, field hockey, tennis, and golf. In short, the Director's Cup is a worthy goal, but it's certainly not the most accurate indicator of the overall health of a sports program, esecially given that "honors institutions maintaining a broad-based program". In 2006-2007, Virginia placed 13th in the Director's Cup. Littlepage et. al. were pleased and hailed this as a great achievement for the university. How did UVA do in football? Of course, 0 points. In 2007-2008, Virginia placed 17th. How did UVA do in men's basketball? Of course, 0 points. Wait a minute, no worries, though: the NACDA only takes a program's top 20 sports to factor into the equation; it's right there on the website: "Sports Included: Division I -- 20, 10 men's and 10 women's". UVA has 27 sports. Essentially, football and men's basketball are meaningless to the Director's Cup, as long as other sports carry the weight. Virginia Tech finished 37th in the 2007-2008 rankings, their highest ever, if I'm not mistaken. Of course, football and men's basketball aided their climb. So, while Casteen and Littlepage raise a glass of Pinot Noir to the Director's Cup, they recognize that football and men's basketball, the two sports the public builds its perception upon, can be mediocre, and UVA can still maintain its Director's Cup standing. It's criminal, really. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Due to time constraints, those are the top three reasons. I didn't have to bring Groh's nepotism (obvious), UVAs lust to hire former alums to positions even when they're not supremely qualified (Marc Iavaroni was #2 on the head coaching list, and nearly beat out Leitao), and academic constraints (UVA doesn't let student-athletes gray-shirt, and it's cost us more than 1 player) into this mix. Though I could. As a result, what you see here is a system that's created a perfect storm, of sorts, to have UVA's revenue sports lie in mediocrity. For every good hire Littlepage has made (Brian O'Connor for baseball, for example), he's made one subpar one (Al Groh, football). As long as the minor goods can overshadow the obvious bads, like they do for the three reasons I've mentioned above, UVA will seldom be better than mediocre in the revenue sports. It's a painful, bitter pill to swallow. And I've choked it down with agony with loss after heartbreaking loss. And it'll be no different Saturday.

And I went to the doctor today to check on my ankle, and rabidbeaver was dead on the money: it was gout. And it was attributable primarily to genetics. Thanks, mom! ;) But in all seriousness, I appreciate the input there. I got a perscription for an anti-inflammatory and a cortisone pack, and my ankle's already back to about 80% (I couldn't walk on it this afternoon). Rest and relaxation, and hopefully it'll be better by Saturday. ;)

Ah, that shot on the 10 wouldn't be best, then. It does put a bit of pressure on the elbow and wrist to do it. With the elbow problems you've had, you're far better off using a plastic ball and going more straight at it. I'm glad to hear that you're pain-free; it's an absolute drag to be kept from something you like doing because of an aching joint. I've felt that on a limited basis with my ankle. But you elbow problem to me seems like it was a nerve problem, perhaps a pinched nerve that bowling kept aggravating. I had one in my neck my 8th grade year when I played football, and I just kept getting stingers and kept getting stingers. After the season ended, it went away, and I haven't had one since. As long as it's gone, that's a great thing. And if nothing else, you've diversified your game, and that's priceless on tougher lane conditions. With some more consistency on spares, there's no doubt you'll get to 200. It's crazy how a minor/moderate injury can really hurt a bowler's average. Heck, even the trivial ones can. I had an ingrown fingernail about a month ago (swelling, and even some bleeding), and for two weeks I couldn't get the proper rotation or speed on my strike balls (16 and 15 pounds, BTW). My speed was down about 3 MPH, and everything I threw, regardless of foot position and mark, was consistently right of target. Didn't touch a ball, and came back and threw that 556 series the week after. Hopefully I can improve my average as the season moves forward. I'm getting a ball with a little more surface for Christmas, and I'm going to see if Junior can drill it to get a little more action a little quicker coming off my hand. Especially for slicker lanes; they oil the lanes so heavily in PA that even after drying my strike/spare balls off every frame that I've more than once had a ball slip out of my hand on the delivery. I don't know if you'd be correct in your guess about my mother. She bowled a little bit, but never enough to stay active in the leagues. Basically, she bowled because her friends did it. However, here's a clue to see if you right. Vague, but it might help. My mother was the first of five. I remember telling you a few years ago about my uncle that you played football with in the '80s. He was the middle child on that same side!

No offense taken. :) But it's still quite a doozy, and an important one. The last time UVA lost to Liberty, in 1998, Jeff Jones didn't last to coach another season. This is UVA's biggest upset since that loss 10 years ago, I'd go so far to say. Thank goodness we held on to beat Puerto Rico-Mayaguez by 7 in the 2006-2007 season, else that would've been the 2nd-worst upset in UVA history. UVA has no business playing Liberty close at all. We have too much raw talent to play their style of gameplan. There may never be another "Chaminade" for UVA. One, I can't see UVA getting back to #1 in a revenue sport until I'm old and gray. Second, to lose to a small college team not even in the NCAA is just epic, really. The comparison is inaccurate, of course, and I knew it was far from perfect when I posted. But it is a big upset, and it REALLY calls into question Leitao's coaching philosophy. And we did take care of VMI in our opener...by 10. We had to hold on to beat Radford, for goodness sakes. We're playing like a team that wouldn't even win the Big South. And that's deeply disturbing. Especially with a roster chocked full of 3* and 4* players.

This is a great story, and it has flown quite a bit under the radar. Thanks for posting!

That's awesome! Sure didn't know you bowled, but that's a good thing to have in common! I don't come from as much of a bowling tradition. My mother did leagues way back in the '70s, and tried again about 2001, but her back's in terrible shape, and she really can't lift the ball to throw it. I had to beg to get to go, pretty much. I sure did bowl at Mountaineer. I bowled in youth leagues for 4 years, from Fall '99 until Spring '03. All through high school, pretty much. I was atrocious when I started (110s), but I took advantage of that "3 free games every day" card they give throughout the summer, and got better by about 10 pins each season and 10 pins in the summer. By the time I graduated, I averaged just under 160. I bowled on a men's summer league at Mountaineer in Summer '04, after my first year of undergrad. Taking advantage of the $10 card again, I got my average up to 171. And I was the worst on my team by 20 pins. Going to UVA ended my bowling for quite some time. There used to be 3 bowling alleys in Charlottesville, 1 even on campus. When Kegler's came into Charlottesville, they expanded to 48 lanes, renovated the facilities, and pretty much drove the other two mom-and-pop lanes out of business. Being the only game in town, they promptly jacked their prices exorbitantly high, $5.50/game on off-hours. Needless to say, being a college student, I couldn't afford that, and I pretty much stopped. I'd still bowl in the summer, but it wasn't enough to keep the average up and all. I got back into it in the last year up in Pennsylvania. I took a good friend of mine to Midway Lanes in Carlisle one day, just on a whim. That place reminds me so much of Green Valley, it's uncanny. Anyway, I forgot how much I enjoyed it, and I bowled a 206 without having picked up a ball in 3 months. Not only that, it's VERY affordable up there: $2.75/game on off-hours, $3.25/game on the weekends. Since last winter, I'd been going 1-2 times per week, just trying to see how I'd do. I'd average in the upper-160s, nothing too spectacular. I had planned to get a team of law school buddies together for the fall leagues, but it fell through for two reasons. One, their signups were in very early August, and we don't get back into town until mid-August. Two, law students are very uptight, and ridiculously so, about their schedules, and I couldn't get the schedules to work out. One day when I was bowling this fall, one of the workers came up to me and asked if I'd be willing to take an open spot in a Sunday night mixed league. I was more than happy to get back into it, and I agreed. I enjoy the league quite a bit, my team's just not terribly good, though. The other 3 are considerably inconsistent. The follow-up-a-170-with-a-90 kind of inconsistent. As far as my bowling now, I'm painfully consistent. In 8 weeks in the league in PA, I've not bowled under a 500 series. I've also not bowled over a 556 series (which happened two Sundays ago, with a 176-170-210). I have a few problems that I've tried to work out, but it's kept my average down. First, I tend to throw more splits than the average bowler, and I'm at a loss for why. I like to throw out around the fifth board, and have the ball break in about 35 feet down the lane. If I miss that mark inside, it's split city. Second, I'll chop 1-2 multi-pin spares per series, especially 4-7s and 6-10s. Third, I don't strike as consistently as I should: I average around 4 strikes per game, and I seldom get them in streaks. Leave 1-2 opens with that every game, and you'll get about what I average now: 172. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to bowl this weekend if the pain in my foot subsides. As far as my best goes, I was fairly close to a 300 this summer, in hindsight. I bowled a 268 in May at Mountaineer, right when I came in for the summer. 11 strikes and an open second frame. Just a bit heavy in that 2nd frame, left the 7, and overshot the spare. In an average game, though, you're a fair bit better than I. The crazy thing is, I'm fairly consistent with the corner spares, and especially the 10; and that's what you say you have the most problem with. One trick I've found that works for me is to use a less reactive strike ball while shooting at them. I stand on about the 30th board for a 6-pin and the 35th board for a 10-pin, and aim at the third arrow. In my release, instead of having a wrist rotation, I try to keep my hand a bit flatter as I throw it. If executed properly, what you'll see is a nice little arc outside to about 40 feet down the lane, and then the ball will ride a razor's edge and hit what's directly in front of it.

In my almost-apathy about this weekend's game, I found this little ditty online that fairly describes how the UVA faithful feel right now. It's sure to be an instant classic, set to the 70's tune "Cat's in the Cradle": My child arrived here at UVa Moved up the ladder nepotism’s way But there were Planes to fly, and Chess to play He learned to coach from a book off eBay He was OC 'fore ya knew it even though he blew He'd say “I’m gonna be like you, Dad It’s my job after you’re through Came straight from the cradle with a silver spoon Little boy Groh got promoted too soon Good to have you home, son, you’ll need thick skin But we will together win, son, Someday they’ll all forget we’re kin My son scored ten just the other day He said, “We lost the ball Dad, it’s not the plays Can you teach me to coach”, I said “Not today I got donors to screw”, he said “That’s OK” And he walked away, and his mind was still dimmed And said “I’m gonna be like him, yeah, You know I’m gonna be like him! The program is fatal and it’s dyin’ soon Little boy Groh’s not a coaching buffoon Can’t score a lick at home or on the road again But that’s how you get a win, son, Ya gotta score to get a win Lost thirteen to three just the other day Clemson Tigers stuffed all three of our plays “Son I’m proud of you, we almost punched it in” He shook his head and said with a grin “What I’d really like Dad is to call a life-line, please, Seems we can’t score on the Brookville Bees” The program is fatal and it’s dyin’ soon Little boy Groh will be fired by June He’s lookin’ for a new home but until then The Hoos will not see a win, son We’ll drown another shutout with gin I’ve long since been fired, my son's run away A worse team’s got him callin’ their plays I said “4th and 1 shotgun are you out of your mind” He said “The circumstances say you throw every time” You know Blacksburg’s a #%^$& and that Beamer is too And it ain’t like workin’ for you, Dad, It ain’t like workin’ for you. And as I hung up the phone it occurred to me He'd blown up just like me My boy’s a bust like me So Mike’s now eatin’ with a greasy spoon Little boy Groh wearin’ orange, maroon He’s found himself a home with the Hokie kin The Hoos finally get a win, now You know that’s how we’ll get a win! "

It's a shame. The two best basketball schools in this state are GMU and VCU. That's downright sad.

Great post! And I second it!

Yes, I sure do. Average in the low-mid 170s up in leagues in PA.

Liberty upsets UVA tonight, 86-82. What a whale of a gameplan from Dave Leitao: "We have 3 players over 6'10''. Nah, let's make our 4 play out of position at the 5 and run a small lineup the entire evening. That way, we can totally take offensive production entirely out of the post. Not only that, I want to try to shoot more 3-pointers than 2-pointers tonight. I better tell my senior and junior swingmen to not score any points, too. Victory assured!" I feel like Boeheim: "We're not winning 10 f------ games this year".

I may be straining the tissues, that's definitely an option. My only concern is that I don't know how I did it. I bowl fairly regularly, but I lead a more sedentary lifestyle than most (law school doesn't help this at all). I do know the last time my foot flared up like this, I was back home as I am now. And my bed has railings that are just the perfect size for my feet to get caught in. I have been getting sharp moderate/strong pains in my foot, yes. Not when I keep my foot stationary, though. Only when I turn/bend my foot (as in walking, etc.) does the sharp pain arrive. And it hurts considerably more to turn my foot to the left than the right, if that's any help at all.

I know gout may be associated with a diet high in proteins, fats, and alcohol. I'm a tea-tottler, so #3 is out. I've really tried to cut back on proteins and fats, especially since May (and I've lost a considerable amount of weight doing so). I also know being overweight has a correlation to gout, and I am overweight (hence the change in diet and weight loss). On the other hand, gout's caused by a buildup of uric acid. And my immediate family has had trouble with uric acid regulation (uncle has had gout, other relatives have had uric acid kidney stones). So this may be something to examine further.

Hey, everyone. I just had a question. Over the past couple of days, I've had some moderate/severe pain in my ankle. I'll give an outline format, make it easier to follow: 1. Cause? I have absolutely no idea where I got it from, I woke up with it 2 days ago. I may have turned it in bed railing. 2. Location? Upper-left side of my right foot (along the big toe side, i.e.), right along where my leg curves into my foot. 3. Symptoms? None when I keep my foot stationary, but sharp/stabbing pain when I stretch my foot or when I walk. 4. Other sensations? Occasionally I can feel a sensation from the pain as far up as my knee and down into my toes. 5. Swelling? Yes, moderate swelling, on the curve of my foot where the pain is. Generally, I'd Web-MD this, but I figured I'd ask here, especially as some people have had quite a bit of experience with these sorts of things. I've had tendonitis in there before, but this feels a bit different, as this is on the upper side of my foot rather than near my Achilles'. Tendonitis still, or perhaps something more/less sinister?

Whenever I hear about looney political correctness, I always have to assume it comes from CA. And I wasn't disappointed...

'98 was 10 years ago. ;). But I get you. This is pretty good analysis, though, and I didn't know the fact about '97. Another good fact about '97: that's the last time UVA lost their game before playing VT. The Hoos won the following week. I hope that rings true again. And I hope the 10-year swing works ('95-'05 FSU, '98-08 VT?)

Bolded part is funny. BS at OC. ;)

That's 2 points too many for UVA. And Macho Harris will score more points than Stinespring's offense. But your third point of analysis will be correct, I believe. I know I've said it already: VT-10 UVA-0 And it'll set football back 50 years... I might be trying to downplay it a little, but I do for 2 reasons. One, I'm less disappointed this way. Two, VT doesn't lose these types of games. Especially to us.

Either QB will be good enough this weekend. You all complain about Stinespring, but you haven't seen an inept offense yet. You will Saturday...

2nd-straight guy to get to 24 and blow it.